PREP GIRLS GOLF: Vista Murrieta just misses state, but Kim advances

Freshman shoots 71 to move on to Tuesday's tourney in Rancho Cucamonga

MURRIETA — MURRIETA ---- As 14-year-old Vista Murrieta freshman Alli Kim prepared for her third shot on her first hole at the CIF WSCGA Southern California Regional on Thursday, she had to decide whether to be true to

her golf instincts, or listen to her father’s sage advice.

“I normally like to land the ball as close to the hole as possible on that kind of chip,” Kim said. “But I tried to listen to my dad. He told me the greens would be fast, so I should try to land the ball 10 feet in front of each hole.”

Father knew best. Kim’s 50-yard chip on the par-5 17th hole landed short of the hole and rolled in for an eagle.

Her pinpoint short iron helped Kim finish with a 1-under-par 71, which tied her for a sixth-place individual finish in the regional state qualifier at The Golf Club at Rancho California.

The Broncos finished in fifth place, with a combined score of 391. Torrey Pines, which had five players shoot 76 or lower, won

the team title with a score of 369, 16 shots ahead of second place Diamond Bar.

Anaheim Canyon’s Jessica Vasilic, a 6-foot-3 Swedish phenom, won the individual crown with a 66.

The top three teams from the field of 10 and the top nine individuals from the field of 124 will advance to the state championship Tuesday at Red Hill Country Club in Rancho Cucamonga.

Texie Petchel (75), Carolane Gariepy (76), Aleia Gariepy (76) and Lauren Lee (91) rounded out the five-player team total for the Broncos.

Kim, who admitted to having plenty of butterflies on her first hole, said her quick start was important.

“I saw the ball spin

and then roll into the hole,” said Kim, who became the first Broncos girl to

reach the state golf finals. “Then I heard everybody screaming.

“Starting off like that was a really big confidence booster.”

Her father was both stunned and relieved.

“I knew she would be nervous on the first hole,” said Kim’s father, Terry. “I was just hoping she’d get close enough to the hole to get a par.

“When the ball rolled in, I said to myself, ‘She’s going to be fine today.’”

Kim’s shotgun start round was a mixed bag of precise tee shots, quality iron play and sporadic putting. She mixed in four birdies, three bogies, and a double bogey after four-putting the eighth hole.

“That early eagle definitely settled her down,” Vista Murrieta coach Ryan Heise said. “I know she’d like to have a few putts back, but she made up for it.”

Petchel’s round included two birdies, three bogies and an unfortunate double bogey when she overshot the green at 15.

“I used too much club, and I knew it was trouble when I hit it,” said Petchel, a sophomore. “My putting was good, and I hit the ball pretty good. Other than that one hole, I played pretty well.”

The Broncos, who won the team qualifier last week, finished five shots behind third-place Palm Desert.

“This was kind of our goal all year was to get to this tournament,” said Heise, whose team will return five its top six